Shirring attachment for sewing machines



Dec. 15, 1953 c. SEAMAN ET AL SHIRRING ATTACHMENT FOR SEWING MACHINES 3 Sheets-Sheet Filed Nov. 22, 1949 m fil M I. a

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INVENTORS Dec. 15, 1953 c. SEAMAN ET AL SHIRRING ATTACHMENT FOR SEWING MACHINES 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed NOV. 22, 1949 1953 c. SEAMAN ET AL SHIRRING ATTACHMENT FOR SEWING MACHINES 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Nov. 22, 1949 INVENTOR5 [an/A20 L.

JEAMAA/ AND Patented Dec. 15, 1953 UNITED STATES att re eArEN-r ornci:

SHIR-RIN G -ATTACHMEN T' FOR/ SEWING' MACHINES:

Edward L; Seaman Application.November 22, 1949, Serial N 0. 128,806 12 Claims," (Cl. 112 -132)" This invention relates to. sewing machines, more particularly to hem-forming. attachments; for use therewith especially adapted 'forrinakingi heins on'curved skirt bottoms.

Circular andother wide. bottoms on skirts, coats and the like present a' difficult problem when the hem is formed and stitched 'ona' ma:- chine because the marginal. portion which is. turned up to form the hem is notstraightbut follows a substantial curve. Consequentlmi if inore'than'a'very'narrow hem is turned; the edge of'the inner" face of the hem is" muchv longer thanthe line of stitching. This'requires'gather ing or 'shi-rringof the upper inside margin of." the; hem, eithercontinuously or at'intervals, to takecare' of theexcessimaterial. Continuous shi-rrin-g would requirea nice'adjustment of the. extent of the shining relativeto'the dimensions; of" the adjacent garment parts which" would "be. impracticable in working one variety of gar Z0 merits. It is preferable; therefore, to providejfor intermittent shirring or gathering of-the inner. face of the hem under the'control' of'the operator'as the work progresses through the machine.

The objects of thejinvention; therefore; are

(a) toprovide apparatus 'forforming a hem on" the margin of a garment as'iti'is' fed into a sewing machine;

(by to provide apparatus bywhi'ch the depth of the hem may be varied; 30

(c) to provide a hem folder which maybe readily swung out-of its position withiirthe folds of the hem before the hem is'finallyclosedfpere mitting completion of the sewing without removing the garment from thernachine; 5

(d) to provide apparatus by which the inner face of the hem may begathered-or shirred to' the extent and at the places desired. by; the; operatorto equalize the effective lengths of'the layers of material being sewedtogether;

(e) to provide hemming apparatus readily ape plicable to standard sewingmachines' in"; the form of an attachment thereto and? powered .i therefrom without material alterationof thema-V chineproper; and

(fl particularly to provide: suchan" attache ment applicable to'blin'd stitch machines.

The invention is hereinillustrated and exemrplified by means of a detailed description ofthe: present preferred embodiment thereof asadapt=v ed for use in conjunction with a blind-stitch machine of well known construction and"generally-of thetype shown and-describedinU! S: Patent 1,9263641 to Buono et a1. It' isto'be understood, however; that'the invention is not lim- 2'3; ited. tovuse with. such machines or to use. with blind-stitch machines since, by obvious modifica tions, itmay be used with equal effect on machines of othertypes. The following description is to be read in conjunction with the drawings, in which:

Fig. l is a plan of a blind-stitch machine.

having th'e invention incorporated therein as an attachment, certain parts being omitted;

Fig. 2 .is'a front "elevation of "the same machine also showingthe pivoted workhol'derinplacey Fig; 2a isa detail of driving mechanisnronthe Fig'.:.3"is':a pers'pectivewiew of principal parts "of the attachment which are adjacent the sewing. head;

Fig; 4 is a' plan ofthehem-forining and shir ring; attachment; sectioned on the horizontal planeindi'cated' bythe'line i of Fig; 3;-

Figg la is a perspective detail ofthe front end of the hem foldersupporting bracket;

Fig. 5 is'an elevation,- partly in section =ofthe sewing headand associated parts;

Fig. 6"isa"side"elevation as seen-from the left of. Fig. 5, showing the adjacent parts "of'the attachment, the needle arm being omitted Fig: 7 is adetailed elevation on the line l-l of Fig. 6;

Fig.- 8 isa bottom view of the henr folder;

Fig; 9' isa front elevation" of the hem folder with '-a'-layer "of fabric therein; and

Fig: 10 is-'a'sectionofthe hemof a garment such" as may be which will now he described-.-

Referring to-Figs. 1 and 2, they showthe principal parts of ablind-stitch machine, not in itselfpart of' the'invention, which a base iEIaframe-arm liiianeedle'headiiand pivoted work holder'ie; thehead 2t of which extends" I The machine the usual main shaftii "equipped at its outeren'd witha'*belt-pulleyofiil and ahandwheel The outer "end of the shaftisequipped with a drive, pulley Ziadapted toreceive'the'auidliary'cleated belt 26 which servesto drive theattachment to 1 underneath the needle:

be later described."

The work holderhead ZGparri'es the usual piv oted' work supporting-fingers 23;" 29"(Figs; 5 and. 7') and anoscillating rib; 35 .which support the. material being sewn; the rib forming a'bight.

thereinthrough-which the needle passes; as is Well known'in th-e'art. Protruding from the end of-the-needle head-l8 is'the'needle shaft 31 carrying the needle bar-'32. in which is fastened the curved needletdr The machine has the usual produced by the apparatus overlies and coacts with the feed fingers 28 and 29 and a looper which forms the stitches, these parts being omitted for the sake of clarity. The pivoted work holder I9 is actuated by the shaft which extends to a position adjacent the knee of the operator. Overlying the front portion of the machine is a worksupporting table 36 mounted on a rotatable shaft 38 mounted in the frame of a machine, the table being supported by a leg base IS. The table 36 may be swung into or out of position adjacent the head 2!], depending on the kind of work being done. The pivoted work holder is depressed by means of the shaft 35 to enable the work to The depth of penetration of the needle 34 is regulated by means of the dial 48, all in a known manner.

The attachment of the invention consists of a replacement for the foot assembly with which machines of this type are equipped, a pivotally mounted hem folder, shirring mechanism associated therewith and driven by the belt 26, and control means for the shirring mechanism. These parts will now be described in the order named.

Referring particularly to Figs. 3, 4, id and 5, the foot assembly replacement is essentially a cut-down version of the foot assembly which is standard equipment. It consists of a bracket attached to the front end of the needle head I8 by screws 5|. This bracket, together with the notched attaching plate 52 which extends beneath and is fastened to the head I8, carries needle guides 5 and 55, a needle wear plate 56 and an upstanding tongue 58 which cooperates with the looper. For directin the material to the needle there is a vertical guide it and a holddown finger 66 made of spring steel and attached to a bar ISI which is fastened in a collar 62 attached to the bracket as by brazing. Finger 6b is provided on its underside (Fig. '7) with downwardly extending ears G4, 65 which cooperate with the rib 30 in holding the material while the stitch is forming.

The hem folder assembly (Figs. 3, 4, 4a. and 8) is supported on a forwardly extending angular bracket l8, attached to the side of the machine head It by screws II. As shown in Fig. 4a, the front of this bracket is provided with a lateral extension I2, the rear edge of which extends upwardly to provide a stop id. An arm I5 is pivotally mounted on bracket ID by means of a shouldered screw It which passes through a spring washer TI and enters the hole '55. Adjustably mounted on arm I5 is an adjustable hem folder comprising a plate It, the rolled edge of which cooperates with a folding guide es which is continuous with an upper guide bar 8|. (See Fig. 9.) This folder is adjustably attached to the bar I5 by screws 82 passing through a bar washer 8 5 and slots in bar BI. The forwardly extending handle 85 is attached to this assembly by means of which it may conveniently be swung about its pivot. Slidably secured by screws 86 in a bracket formed on the underside of plate I9 is an extensible angular rod 88, the position of which determines the depth of the hem. The hem folder is shown in full lines in the drawings in its operating position in which it is held against the stop Id by a coil spring 39 attached to posts 90 and 9|, attached respectively to the bracket IE! and the arm I5. In Fig. 4, the folder assembly is shown in its inoperative position in dotted lines, in which position the end 92 of bar I5 engages feed dog which 39 which rests on the be inserted in the machine.

the stop I4, and the spring 89 acts to hold it in this position since it passes to the opposite side of the pivot screw I5.

The shirring mechanism, referring to Figs. 1, 2a, 3, I and 6, is supported by a bracket, preferably a casting, which extends across the central part of the sewing machine and consists of a tubular portion I00, an arch NH, and a forwardly and downwardly extending arm I62 at the end of which is a boss IN. The bracket is also provided with a downwardly extending leg I05 which is bolted to the base of the machine at I98. It may also be further supported from the machine arm I6 by a brace I08. Extending through the tubular portion II!!! of the bracket is a shaft carrying at its outer end a pulley I69 driven by the belt 26, and at its other end a drive member I III. Passing through the boss I64 is a rock shaft I I3 carrying at one end a slotted arcuate crank III, which is adjustably coupled with the drive member III] by a connecting rod II2. The latter is attached eccentrically to the drive member at H4 and is adjustably attached to the crank III by a ball and socket joint III: which is fastened in its selected position by a wing nut I I6. Rotation of member IIII, therefore, imparts oscillation to the rock shaft H3. At the opposite end of shaft H3 is a slotted arm II8 carrying a slidable angular arm IIII adjustably secured to arm III] by a screw I20.

The horizontal portion of arm IIS contains a bore in which is a pin I2I held in position by set screw I22. Rotatably mounted on the end of pin I2! is a yoke I24 carrying the shirring blade I253. The blade is attached to the yoke by screws which extend through the perforated angular lug I25. Between yoke I24 and arm H9 and surrounding the pin I2I is a coil sprin I28 which has one end anchored to the pin and the other end hooked over the lug I26, the tension or the spring acting to press the shirring blade I25 downwardly toward the plate I9. To enable the tension of the spring to be adjusted, a short lever I29 is attached to the pin I2I by which the pin can be rotated. Normally the shirring blade I25 is held out of operating position by means about to be described and is permitted to drop into operating position under the influence of spring I28 at such times as it is desired to shirr or gather portions of the inner face of the hem being form d.

The shirring blade control means, which acts in opposition to the spring I28 to lift the blade I25, comprises the following parts, which are best shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 3, adapted to be operated by a foot pedal (not shown) positioned underneath the right hand side of the machine within easy reach of the operator: Extending over the lug I26 is an arm I36, the end of which is attached to the lug by a short spring I3I. Arm I3@ is pivoted at I32 to the tubular portion I06 of the bracket. interposed between the bracket and the arm is a small stationary plate I34 having ears I35 carrying adjustable stops I36. The end of arm I38 is attached by a pin I38 to a link I39 mounted on the pivot I50. The opposite end of link I39 is attached to a strap or similar tension member MI by means of a hook I42. It will be understood that the member MI extends downwardly to the foot pedal previously mentioned. Attached to the pin I33, at the junction of link I39 and arm I39, is a tension spring I'M, the other end of which is attached to the base of the machine or other convenient stationary part so as normally to maintain the end of arm I30,

as J which. iis'zadjaoent the: shirring bladerdrrz raised" position. Thissend oii.the'iarin-wil li be zlowered'. the. foot; pedah attached. to-- As is. apparent, the; strength" of: springs .135 and'hM is suflicient to overcome the upon depression of member: I i I tension ofspring 128- which tends.todepressthe shirring blade E25, and obviously. when this .tene sion isrremoved by-operation; of the:;--.pedal.:the.; will drop into engagement with;

shirring blade the plate ill or the iabricrestingrt Foot control of the shirring stitched and the lever systemccomprising'arm E30 and linlr i39'p1aces.. the :foot in a convenient location; However, the lint:- mightbe omitted, and tension member which isconnected to.theushirringgblade. I 'e= wise spring l 4% :might bezlocatedy in any, position in the system. to give theudesired. movementtoiarm 538."

The operation of th'e'1machine..is' as .-fllo.ws: The material to be hemmed .iszfedfinto the folder as shown in Fig. 9 where-the .materialiisldesige nated E59. Theinnerface l5! of the hem over.-

lies plate is and the inwardly turned'edge: E52

is directed around underneath the plate... Initially the folder drawings in :iull lines and the shirr isheld upout of oneratingpositioni. As t-he formation of the hem 'progressestitiszpossible for the operator to observe'from'timeto timelthat an excess-of material is accumulating in theincauses the shirring material overlying plate. i9 :and pushes them-um derthe hold-down finger 86; This gathering will continue untilithe pressure. on the foot-pedal is released, drawing the shirring bladehup andpei mitting stitching to progress without any gathering. In forming the hem on a garment such as a skirt it is obvious that the hem folder must be removed from the hem before it *isentirely closed, and so while there are still a few inches of unstitched hem, the operator swings the holder out ofthe hem to the position shown in dotted lines in Fig. l and'operates the machine to complete the stitching. of the hero The amountof the gatheringor-shirring which takes place while the shirring blade is inoperation may be varied by adjustingthe locationof the connecting rod H2 on the slotted arm ii I, and'also by varying the position. ofthe shirring blade by movement of the arm H9 in theslotted arm iii The latter adjustment is more or-less permanent and minor variations are preferably made by adjustment of the connecting-rod H2 which is locked in position by thawing nut Ht;

While the invention has been exemplifiedby reference to a detailed description of one embodiment thereof, it is to be understood that this is merely illustrative and that the invention is to be constructed broadly within the purview of the claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In combination with a sewing machine having feed means and stitch-forming means including a needle, intermittent shirring means comprising a plate positioned in advance of said needle, a shirring blade pivotally supported in a fixed location above said plate, means continuously urging said blade toward said plate, means blades; leaves the operatcrs hands free to guide the material being.

H. 11 connected: rectlyto arm 430 between :itsipivctand theend:

isrin the position: shown in: the.

ng. blade: 525' fen.continuously-reeiprocating saidhlade regardeless .of .1 its :position, lifting. means. normally hol 1 ing said blade away from said plate againstxthe;

action; of saidaurgingrzmeans to permitieedof thematerial. being sewn across said plate With out-shirring; and means iunder thecontrolof the.

prising .a flat plate positioned in advance'oi said blade pivotally supported ina fixed position' above said plate, resilient means continuouslyurging-said blade toward said plate,

needle, a vshirring means. for continuously reciprocating said blade across -.thexsurface of said plate regardless of the position of said holding :said blade aw from said, plate against the action of said urging-means to permi-tfeed' of. the-:material being sewn acrOsssaid pla-te without shirring,

ineffective.

31 In combination with -a sewing machine havingsfeed means and stitch-forming-means including-a needla said feed including a resilient 1 intermittent shirring means positioned in advance of said hold-down finger, comprising a plate needleand: underlying said finger, a shining blade pivotall'y supported in a fixed location above said plateameans continuously urging said blade toward said plate, means for continuously recip rocating said blade along the line of feed and 'un-' der saidfinger regardless oftheposition ofsaid blade, lifting means normally holding said blade away: from saidplate'against the action of said urging-means to permit feed of tlie material'be- Y ing-sewn'across said plate Without shirring, and means under the control of the operator for renderingsaid lifting means insifective whereby said blade forms gath'ers in thematerial on said plate and pushes them under said hold-down finger.

4". In a sewing machine having fabric is d and stitchingmeans, in combination; hem-iolding means in advance oi-said feeding means having a plate over: which the inside face of the hem passes, a continuously reciprocating blade pivot ally supported in' a fixed location to engage the inside layer of the hem as it passes oversaid plate to shirr'said layer, continuously operating drive means for reciprocating said blade regardless of its position, means continuously urging said blade toward said plate, lifting means normally acting in opposition to to said last mentioned means to lift said-blade: away from the plate, andmeans under thecontrolof the operator to release said lifting m-eans to cause shirring of the inside face of the hem.

5. In a sewing machine having a drive shaft and fabric feeding and stitching means, in combination, hem-foldingmeans in advance of said feeding and'stitching means having'a plate over which the-inside face of the hem passes, a continuously reciprocating blade pivotally supported in a fixed location to engage the inside layer of driven from said drive shaft to reciprocate said blade regardles of its position, means continuously urging said blade toward said plate, holding means including a pivoted arm acting in opposition to said urging means to lift said blade away from the plate, and tension means attached to said arm and extending to a position adjacent blade. lifting means normally means under the-0011MB of the operator for rendering lifting meansto be stitched, a

7 the foot of the operator for releasing said holding means to cause shirring of the inside face of the hem.

6. In a sewing machine, in combination, stitching means, a plate over which passes the material shirring blade pivotally supplate, resilient means urging said blade toward said plate, an arm pivotally Supported with an end overlying said blade and connected thereto, a spring acting on said arm in opposition to said resilient means and of suificient strength to lift said blade upwardly away from said plate, and a tension member under the control of the operator adapted to move said arm in a direction to release said blade.

7. The combination defined in claim 6 in which stop means are associated with said arm for limiting its movement.

8. The combination of claim 7 in which said stop means are adjustable.

In a sewing machine, in combination, stitching means, a plate over which passes the material to be stitched, a shirring blade pivotally supported over said plate, resilient means urging said blade toward said plate, an arm pivotally supported intermediate its ends with an end overlying said blade and connected thereto, a link pivotally supported intermediate its ends and coupied at one end to the other end of said arm, a spring acting on said arm in opposition to said resilient means and of sufficient strength to lift said blade upwardly away from said plate, and a tension member under the control of the operator connected to the other end of said link and adapted to move said arm in a direction to release said blade.

10. In a sewing machine, in combination, stitching means, a plate over which passes the material to be stitched, a shirring blade pivotally supported at one end over said plate, resilient means urging said blade toward said plate, an arm pivotally supported with an end overlying said blade and connected thereto intermediate ends of said blade, a spring acting on said arm in opposition to said resilient means and of suflicient strength to lift said blade upwardly awa from said plate, and a tension member under the control of the operator adapted to move said arm in a direction to release said blade.

11. A hemming attachment for a blind-stitch machine having a needle head, an oscillating needle and a cooperating oscillating rib which forms a bight in the material to be sewn, said attachment comprising a first bracket attachable to said head carrying guides for said needle and a spring hold-down finger cooperating with said rib, a second bracket attachable to said head and extending forwardly and to one side of said needle, stop means on said second bracket, an arm pivotally mounted on the forward end of said second bracket and swingable between two positions in which it engages said stop means, a spring attached respectively to said arm and to said second bracket and adapted to pass over said pivot as said arm moves between its extreme ported over said positions, a hem-folder carried by said arm and including a plate extending beneath said holddown finger, a shirring blade, means for reciprocating said blade across said plate along the line of feed to the needle, a spring adapted to press said blade toward said plate, a pivoted lever having one end attached to said blade, a spring acting on said lever to raise the blade away from the plate, and means under the control of the operator to move said lever in opposition to the force exerted by said last-mentioned spring to release the blade to effect shirring of material extending across said plate.

12. A hemming attachment for sewing machines adapted to form continuous hems on curved skirt bottoms and the like, said attachment comprising a bracket attachable to the machine so as to extend forwardly of the needle and to one side thereof, such side being that toward which the unstitched folded hem opens, a hemfolder pivotally supported on said bracket and adapted to swing into and out of the operative position in which said folder lies between the folds of the hem, a stop on said bracket adapted to position said folder in its operative position, resilient means associated with said bracket and said folder to movably hold said folder against the stop, a shirring blade pivotally supported in a fixed location overlying said folder when the latter i in operative position, means for continuously urging said blade toward said folder, lifting means normally holding said blade away from said folder in opposition to said urging means, means under the control of the operator for rendering the lifting means ineffective to cause the shirring blade to contact the fold of the hem overlying said folder, and means for continuously reciprocating said blade regardless of its position, whereby a continuous hem may be stitched with intermittent shirring and the folder swung out of the hem before it is completely closed.

CHARLES SEAMAN. EDW'ARD L. SEAMAN.

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